Orbits Flashcards
1
Q
What is an orbit?
A
- The curved path of one celestial object around another celestial object
2
Q
Explain the orbit of the moon around the Earth
A
- Newton’s 1st law: the moon will continue travelling in forward direction
- Gravity from the Earth pulls the moon in
- Gravity from the Earth is not great enough to completely pull the moon due to the moon’s mass, instead the gravity slightly changes the moons direction
- Therefore, the moon continues in a circular orbit
- As velocity is a vector quantity, and the moons direction is constantly chaning, the moons velocity is also constantly changing
- As acceleration is change in velocity over time, and the velocity is constantly changing, the moon is constantly accelerating
3
Q
What is the relationship between an objects size and speed in orbit?
A
- The smaller an object is, the faster is must travel to stay on course